The mastery program is a grading / teaching philosophy I use to run my sixth grade English Language Arts classroom. Students do their best to demonstrate mastery of all skills learned in class through bi-weekly Wednesday assessments and other in-class activities. (Please note that "assessments" does not necessarily mean "tests" in the traditional sense.)
What is the purpose of the mastery program? What are its benefits?
In a nutshell, the mastery program has two purposes: the first is to help
students identify which skills they have mastered and which skills they
need to continue cultivating. In other words, students can't simply
memorize facts for a test and then forget the information two weeks later. Since students know they will be tested on all material again, they're
encouraged to learn skills permanently.
Isn't it stress to take a test every other week?
Mastery assessments can be stressful, no doubt. On the other hand, since mastery assessment scores get erased and replaced every other week, most students find them to be much less stressful than a typical exam because
they know their grades are temporary. In addition, mastery assessments
do not have an overall "final grade" like a typical test. Instead, students get scored on individual skills, which often seems much less daunting.
Why do student grades get erased and replaced every other week?
My philosophy towards grading is that student scores should accurately represent what a child understands at a given point in time. For this reason, I do not include extra credit or homework assignments in final grades as doing so demonstrates the work they've accomplished--not how much they have learned. In an effort to communicate effectively with parents (and to be as accurate as possible about what my students know) I erase previous mastery assessment scores and replace them with current ones so that students, parents, and teachers will have an up-to-date understanding of a child's progress with a particular skill.
To illustrate this point, picture the following example: On October 1st, Billy scores a 5/10 for literary device identification. On October 15th, Billy scores an 8/10 in the same area. In other words, Billy has shown growth in this area. In such an instance, I would replace the 5/10 with his current 8 to show that Billy now understands the material much better. In other words, his grade reflects what he has learned. Remember-- the idea of grades is not to "punish" those who don't comprehend a new concept right away; it's merely to reflect a student's understanding of that concept.
If grades are erased and replaced every two weeks, does that mean students scores can go down?
Yes. In the spirit of reflecting a student's skill base / understanding
accurately, grades can dip down in addition to up. I should mention this a
rarity, however.
What are the students trying to accomplish through these tests?
The primary goal for each student is to improve within his or her work
areas. (A work area is a particular skills that they have not yet mastered.)
Students can demonstrate improvement in one of two ways: first, they can
simply master the work area by receiving an 8/10 on that particular
section of the mastery assessment. Second, they can improve their score by at least 20% from the previous week.
What happens when students reach or exceed their goal?
Students who have mastered particular skills are no longer assessed bi-weekly on those skills. Instead, they "move forward" to a new area of study-- the next, more challenging level of that particular skill. For example, when a student learns how to identify subjects and predicates in a sentence, she will then move on to clauses, phrases, run-ons, and fragments. In essence, this means that students will eventually take tests that are individualized to their specific needs.
Does this mean that when a student masters a skill it is not revisited?
Absolutely not. Even if a child has mastered a particular skill, I frequently include past items on the assessments to make sure information is being retained. In addition, each quarter the students take part in an end-of-term "final exam" for which they are tested on everything we've studied. The idea behind this is for students to truly learn the material as opposed to memorizing information for a test then forgetting it later.
What happens if the students don't reach their goal?
When students have difficulty reaching their goal, it often means one of two things has occurred first, students may have misunderstood (or not completely learned) a new topic of study. Second, students may simply need to spend more time practicing the skills in question. To aid with these issues, I generally offer students extra help outside of class and then give them additional practice items / resources each night until the next assessment. Of course, each child is different, so the course of action may vary.
How do students keep track of their practice?
Student progress is tracked in a variety of ways. First, they keep a mastery chart at school that lists all their current scores for each mastery skill. Second, they keep an identical, personal chart in their English binder so they'll have the information at home if needed. Third, I keep an electronic copy of their scores on Global Pinnacle. (These scores are usually updated every three weeks, however, so they may not be as current as the take-home chart.)
Why are parents asked to sign mastery tests and other mastery-related forms?
In general, I ask parents to sign mastery-related items to keep them informed of what's going on in the classroom as well as how their child is progressing. Because of the unique nature of mastery learning, signing tests, for example, provides parents with a current progress report every other week.
What can students do if they need additional help with their mastery items? What can students do to study these tests?
Students are always welcome to come in for help before or after school. (Please check my office hours by viewing the homepage.) They can also access the resources tab on the classroom website which has other links for many ways to review, such as games, flashcards, and practice sheets. If these methods are to no avail, students can also use their notes or their grammar and literature books. (Please note that our website has copies of nearly all class notes, as well as links to dozens of online practice games and other useful sources.)
Mastery Learning
Frequently Asked Questions...The mastery program is a grading / teaching philosophy I use to run my sixth grade English Language Arts classroom. Students do their best to demonstrate mastery of all skills learned in class through bi-weekly Wednesday assessments and other in-class activities. (Please note that "assessments" does not necessarily mean "tests" in the traditional sense.)
What is the purpose of the mastery program? What are its benefits?
In a nutshell, the mastery program has two purposes: the first is to help
students identify which skills they have mastered and which skills they
need to continue cultivating. In other words, students can't simply
memorize facts for a test and then forget the information two weeks later. Since students know they will be tested on all material again, they're
encouraged to learn skills permanently.
Isn't it stress to take a test every other week?
Mastery assessments can be stressful, no doubt. On the other hand, since mastery assessment scores get erased and replaced every other week, most students find them to be much less stressful than a typical exam because
they know their grades are temporary. In addition, mastery assessments
do not have an overall "final grade" like a typical test. Instead, students get scored on individual skills, which often seems much less daunting.
Why do student grades get erased and replaced every other week?
My philosophy towards grading is that student scores should accurately represent what a child understands at a given point in time. For this reason, I do not include extra credit or homework assignments in final grades as doing so demonstrates the work they've accomplished--not how much they have learned. In an effort to communicate effectively with parents (and to be as accurate as possible about what my students know) I erase previous mastery assessment scores and replace them with current ones so that students, parents, and teachers will have an up-to-date understanding of a child's progress with a particular skill.
To illustrate this point, picture the following example: On October 1st, Billy scores a 5/10 for literary device identification. On October 15th, Billy scores an 8/10 in the same area. In other words, Billy has shown growth in this area. In such an instance, I would replace the 5/10 with his current 8 to show that Billy now understands the material much better. In other words, his grade reflects what he has learned. Remember-- the idea of grades is not to "punish" those who don't comprehend a new concept right away; it's merely to reflect a student's understanding of that concept.
If grades are erased and replaced every two weeks, does that mean
students scores can go down?
Yes. In the spirit of reflecting a student's skill base / understanding
accurately, grades can dip down in addition to up. I should mention this a
rarity, however.
What are the students trying to accomplish through these tests?
The primary goal for each student is to improve within his or her work
areas. (A work area is a particular skills that they have not yet mastered.)
Students can demonstrate improvement in one of two ways: first, they can
simply master the work area by receiving an 8/10 on that particular
section of the mastery assessment. Second, they can improve their score by at least 20% from the previous week.
Students who have mastered particular skills are no longer assessed bi-weekly on those skills. Instead, they "move forward" to a new area of study-- the next, more challenging level of that particular skill. For example, when a student learns how to identify subjects and predicates in a sentence, she will then move on to clauses, phrases, run-ons, and fragments. In essence, this means that students will eventually take tests that are individualized to their specific needs.
Does this mean that when a student masters a skill it is not revisited?
Absolutely not. Even if a child has mastered a particular skill, I frequently include past items on the assessments to make sure information is being retained. In addition, each quarter the students take part in an end-of-term "final exam" for which they are tested on everything we've studied. The idea behind this is for students to truly learn the material as opposed to memorizing information for a test then forgetting it later.
What happens if the students don't reach their goal?
When students have difficulty reaching their goal, it often means one of two things has occurred first, students may have misunderstood (or not completely learned) a new topic of study. Second, students may simply need to spend more time practicing the skills in question. To aid with these issues, I generally offer students extra help outside of class and then give them additional practice items / resources each night until the next assessment. Of course, each child is different, so the course of action may vary.
How do students keep track of their practice?
Student progress is tracked in a variety of ways. First, they keep a mastery chart at school that lists all their current scores for each mastery skill. Second, they keep an identical, personal chart in their English binder so they'll have the information at home if needed. Third, I keep an electronic copy of their scores on Global Pinnacle. (These scores are usually updated every three weeks, however, so they may not be as current as the take-home chart.)
Why are parents asked to sign mastery tests and other mastery-related forms?
In general, I ask parents to sign mastery-related items to keep them informed of what's going on in the classroom as well as how their child is progressing. Because of the unique nature of mastery learning, signing tests, for example, provides parents with a current progress report every other week.
What can students do if they need additional help with their mastery items? What can students do to study these tests?
Students are always welcome to come in for help before or after school. (Please check my office hours by viewing the homepage.) They can also access the resources tab on the classroom website which has other links for many ways to review, such as games, flashcards, and practice sheets. If these methods are to no avail, students can also use their notes or their grammar and literature books. (Please note that our website has copies of nearly all class notes, as well as links to dozens of online practice games and other useful sources.)